Begin Again (Again #1)(53)

Now all I could do was emit a frustrated groan.

Kaden gave me a crooked grin. “It’s great to know you want me, but I don’t think that now … is the right time. With what you just went through, you’re not totally … able to decide.”

Though my body hated him for it, Kaden was right. I loosened my grip on his shoulders and stroked his back.

Kaden closed his eyes, and held his breath. “If you keep this up, I might reconsider,” he murmured and buried his face on my shoulder. His stubbly chin scratched my naked skin—a feeling that made me mad with desire. He kissed me right there and I felt his teeth. I sighed. Kaden knew what he was doing.

When I stopped stroking his back Kaden lifted his head to look at me. His gaze was mysterious but attentive; his eyes darted over my face. Lying between his arms, I felt encompassed. Whatever happened around us, this was a safe place. I turned to look at my favorite tattoo, tracing the lyrics with my finger until his muscles tightened under my touch.

“I love your tattoos,” I murmured, turning to look at the circles on his other arm. “Not because I have a fetish for guys with tattoos, but because their meaning is so powerful.” When I saw the Morse code, I had to smile. Now that I’d met Rachel I could understand the tattoo so much better.

“I like how you always stare at it, and every time I catch you, you blush.”

His mouth twitched. My finger followed the outline of his lips. His eyes darkened, but then Kaden rolled off and lay down next to me. He leaned his head on his hand and looked at me. His eyes kept on returning to the belt of my bathrobe.

“Could you maybe put something on? I’m having a hard time concentrating.”

I rolled on my side so we were facing each other. “Are you sure you want to turn me down?”

His jaw muscles tightened. “Allie.”

“Kaden.”

For a moment he said nothing; he was working on an answer. Then he uttered a sound that was half laugh, half groan. “I didn’t reject you, Bubbles. I just said I won’t sleep with you.”

A second later he had rolled back on top of me. With one hand he opened the bathrobe, and I held my breath as he gazed at me with fiery eyes.

“That doesn’t rule out other things.”

Kaden kissed my mouth, my throat and then glided downward with his lips. He paused at my breasts, pushing the robe a little farther apart, until they lay bare in front of him. He looked at me, a question in his eyes, but I could only bite my lips. That was enough of an answer for Kaden, and he lowered his head, depositing kisses all over my torso. I arched my back and swore I could feel his smile on my skin before he encircled one of my nipples with his lips. I groaned. His let one hand drift down my body until he was at my hips. His touch was the perfect blend of powerful dominance and unbearable gentleness. I longed for release. I longed for him, though I knew it was probably the worst time to throw our rules overboard. But I wouldn’t destroy the beautiful moment by thinking too much about what it meant. It felt way too good for that.

“If you keep this up I’ll jump on you, like it or not,” I panted.

Kaden caressed my breast with his tongue before looking at me through his thick, black lashes. “It’s not about liking it or not liking it.”

“Which means?” I asked, breathless.

His lips moved against my skin. The tingling inside my belly was getting intense. “It means my self-control has its limits.”

I hoped that meant he’d finish what we started. As if reading my mind, he let his hand wander over my hipbones and inward. But instead of touching me where I wanted it the most, he took his fingers down over my thigh to my knee. Then he drifted back to the inside of my thigh and pushed it gently open. His breath caressed my breasts. My own breathing was choppy, and when Kaden stroked the sensitive skin between my legs, my moans echoed off the walls.

“Do you want me to beg you?” I groaned and took his face between my hands so he would see me.

His eyes expressed pure desire. Obviously he was having to pull himself together to keep from taking everything he wanted.

“That would be nice for a change, wouldn’t it?” he whispered, and again I felt the rough stubble of his beard, this time against my breasts.

“Less talking, more … ” I forgot what I’d wanted to say when his hand found the right place. My breath was shaking, and I clutched his arm.

“More what?” he growled.

“More … of that,” I gasped, as he circled his thumb over my most sensitive spot.

I was about to explode. Kaden put his mouth on one of my nipples and sucked on it. I pressed myself against him and as he groaned in agreement I felt it in my whole body. His thumb was moving faster, and I threw my head back. Stars were bursting around me. As the sensations rolled over me in waves, Kaden kissed me passionately, thus catching the hoarse cry that emerged from my throat.

Breathless, I sank back into the pillow. My body was limp, my limbs heavy. Kaden pulled his hand back and straightened my bathrobe. I watched him through half-closed eyes as he tied the belt into a bow. Then he lay down beside me.

“Rules only half broken,” I whispered and turned to face him. “How’s that for a compromise?” Now a powerful sleepiness overtook me; my eyelids fluttered closed. It was as if all the adrenaline had been flushed out of my body.

“The second-best deal I’ve ever made,” he agreed, in a soft voice.